Top Ten Tuesday: Contemporary Reads to Get You Through a Rainy Day

Top Ten Tuesday is an original blog meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. and is currently being hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s topic is “Rainy Day Reads.” Where I live, we don’t get a ton of rainy days, so I don’t necessarily associate certain books with rainy days. If I’m stuck in the house and the world outside looks a little gloomy, my first instinct would probably be to reach for a contemporary. But because contemporaries come in all shapes and sizes, I’ve compiled a list of what I hope is a wide-range of books you could reach for next time it rains. Covers are linked to Goodreads.

1. Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson – When you want to be immersed in a mystery and not look up until you’ve discovered the answer to all your questions. Warning: You will be thinking about this one long after you finish.

2. The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You by Lily Anderson – When you are looking for a contemporary with great banter and smart characters. Warning: No other contemporary characters will every be as smart and witty as Lily Anderson’s.

3. The Accident Season by Moira Fowley-Doyle – When you want something a little dark and gloomy, pick up this one about a family curse. Warning: Will make you crave all the atmospheric novels.

4. More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera– When you want something to make you cry a little, but also make you feel hopeful. Warning: I lied. You will cry a lot.

5. I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo – When you want something sunny and light that will make you laugh. Warning: Extreme sunshine ahead, will make you sad it is so gloomy outside.

6. The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo – When you want something to listen to while you clean the house because there’s nothing better to do than stay indoors, reach for the audio of this debut. Warning: All the feels ahead, you might cry into a sink full of dirty dishes.

7. The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon – When you want to warm your cynical heart, reach for this one and be amazed how Yoon is able to pull off the love-at-first-sight trope flawlessly. Warning: You will never find a more satisfactory love-at-first-sight story ever.

8. Trouble Is a Friend of Mine by Stephanie Tromly – When you want to read about characters getting into all kinds of mischief. Warning: Like Zoe, you will wonder how the heck a trouble-maker like Digby wormed his way into your heart.

9. Pride by Ibi Zoboi – When you are craving a classic, but don’t want to read a classic, read this retelling instead. Warning: You will want all of Austen’s works adapted by Zoboi, you will take every opportunity on your blog to mention it, like I am doing…right now.

10. Listen to our Heart by Kasie West – When you want something short and sweet and not too complicated, reach for Kasie West. Warning: You will enjoy every book and puzzle over how she writes them so fast.

Are you a fan of any of these contemporaries? Which contemporaries would you recommend on a rainy day? Let me know in the comments and be sure to leave me a link to your own TTT post, so I can visit.

54 thoughts on “Top Ten Tuesday: Contemporary Reads to Get You Through a Rainy Day”

Ahh! I spy some I cannot wait to read like Maurene’s (STILL!), Kasie’s, and of course Nicola’s, too. Also, I’ve been curious about “Trouble is a Friend of Mine,” so I may need to pick up a copy of that. It looks like way too fun a read not to discover. 🙂

I love how the idea of a rainy day inside makes us think of completely opposite genres – you contemporary and me horror. I don’t read a lot of contemporary unless it deals with dogs but I do plan on reading Pride eventually.

Allegedly was on sale a month or two on Amazon so I picked it up. I got Listen to Your Heart at the Colorado Teen Literature Conference on Saturday… I’ll probably wait until summer to read that one. I’d like to read something by Maureen Goo sometime too.

There are so many different types of contemporary books! I loved Poet X, The Sun is Also a Star, and Trouble is a Friend, but I still need to read More Happy Than Not, Accident Season, and Allegedly. Maybe I’ll read them the next time it rains!

When it’s dark and gloomy, I want something to brighten my mood. So, I went the warm and fuzzy route. I actually included West and Goo (same books too) on my list, but Tromly and Anderson would fit my list too. One thing I think Fowley-Doyle does brilliantly is create atmosphere, and The Accident Season really showcases that.

I bought I Believe in a Thing Called Love when it came out and I can’t believe I haven’t read it yet. It seems the perfect book to light up a gloomy day. The Accident Season is about family curses?! I need it!!! 🙂